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墨書 Inktalez
However, while their family was enjoying harmony, others did not think so.
Liu Qingxi had been missing for such a long time that at first, they could keep it from many people, but later on, more and more people learned about her disappearance.
In this era, for women, being missing was equivalent to losing their virtue.
Who could guarantee that she was safe during the time she was missing? Family members might trust each other, but what about those with ulterior motives?
One day, a servant from the Yang Residence hurriedly returned from outside and happened to bump into the Wen Family: "What are you doing? So flustered? How many times do I have to tell you? Focus on your work and don't disturb the Young Lady!"
She rarely treated the servants with such severity; this was the first time.
The servant was startled, at a loss for words, stammering: "Old Matriarch, it's bad! Young Lady, Young Lady..."
"Get to the point! What happened to the Young Lady?" The Wen Family felt their heart stop beating, terrifying thoughts flashing through their minds. Could something have happened to Liu Qingxi?
The servant had never seen the Wen Family like this; their usual gentleness had completely vanished. He was stunned: "N-no!"
Wen Family let out a sigh of relief; as long as Liu Qingxi was fine, that was all that mattered.
But this servant was too unreliable; they had already made a mental note of it.
Then she heard the servant say: "Old Man is here. Right now, there are rumors outside about the Young Lady. The Young Lady went missing and after returning, she is pregnant. The child is..." His voice grew quieter and quieter.
By the end, it was almost inaudible.
However, the Wen Family heard everything clearly, and her anger immediately flared up: "These people are just meddling in affairs that don't concern them. Besides, Young Lady is innocent and shouldn't be slandered by them."
The Wen Family understood all too well the lethal damage such rumors could inflict on a woman. If the rumors continued to spread, Liu Qingxi's reputation would be ruined.
"Slow down and tell me exactly what happened."
It turned out that while he was sent out to buy ingredients, he overheard some discussions on the street about the Yang Family and someone being pregnant.
Since Liu Qingxi became pregnant, she had become picky with her food, and her family was always on standby to ensure that light dishes were prepared promptly. He hadn't paid much attention to it.
Until he reached the market and was selecting ingredients when he overheard two vendors chatting next door: "That Lord Yang, with his age and achievements, is bound to soar in the future, yet this incident has occurred."
"Isn't that right? Madam Yang is truly something else; as a woman, she lost her virtue and is pregnant with another man's child, yet she still has the face to come back."
"You might not know this, but Lord Yang even lost his official position because of this unfaithful woman."
Initially, he didn't connect the earlier comments to his own family, but when they mentioned Lord Yang losing his position, it struck him—wasn't that about his own family?
Recently in court, aside from Yang Yichen submitting his resignation, there had been no other changes in official positions.
This piqued his curiosity: "Which Yang Family are you two talking about?"
"Isn't it that one from Maple Lane? Of course, the big kid here would know the news right away," one of them replied without even looking up.
It was then that he realized the seriousness of the situation. In just a short time, rumors about Liu Qingxi had already spread widely. Regardless of who started it, the instigator was undoubtedly malicious.
He didn't even bother to pick the good vegetables and immediately rushed home, coincidentally encountering the Wen Family.
Then the following events unfolded.
The Wen Family learned about the situation from him, their faces turning pale, trembling with anger: "Who is so vicious? Spreading such slanderous rumors, trying to drive someone to their doom!"
The Wen Family cried out in anguish, wishing they could skin and pull the tendons of the person manipulating things behind the scenes.
Don't ask how she knew someone was pulling the strings; if no one came forward, the rumors wouldn't spread so quickly.
"You all forget what you just heard. In front of Young Lady, no one can speak out; otherwise, you'll face severe punishment!" This was the harshest statement the Wen Family had ever made in their life.
No one below doubted it because the Wen Family had always been consistent in their rewards and punishments.
Subsequently, the Wen Family decisively issued a strict order to the remaining servants who were not present: no one was allowed to gossip.
After that, they immediately informed Yang Yichen: "We trust Qingxi's character, but the rumors outside are spreading too fiercely; I'm worried."
Yang Yichen understood what she meant without needing further explanation.
Liu Qingxi, who was pregnant, had a fragile body. Coupled with being kidnapped by Dugu Hao recently, her mental state had been somewhat affected. Hearing such news again would definitely not be beneficial for her.
"Mother, I'll handle it as soon as possible; you stay with Qingxi."
Then, he casually chatted with Liu Qingxi for a moment before saying he needed to step out for some business matters.
Liu Qingxi had no doubts and instructed to pay attention to safety.
She had always been vaguely worried that Dugu Hao would not let things rest, and as long as the two of them stayed in the capital, there was a potential danger.
Yang Yichen nodded and then left his home.
However, he was not dealing with business matters but rather investigating the source of the rumors.
Even though Inorganic Gate was gradually withdrawing, clarifying a rumor, especially one that was poorly constructed, was not a difficult task.
An hour later, his subordinate delivered the truth to Yang Yichen.
His handsome face changed slightly as he coldly snorted, "Is that so? Have they been brought here?"
"Young Master, they have been brought!" The subordinate then pushed the individuals inside.
A few people were tightly bound, their faces unkempt, dressed in coarse linen clothes, looking like honest and simple farmers.
But who would have thought that these few individuals could ruin Liu Qingxi's reputation?
After all, they were just busy commoners; who would take the time to pay attention to official matters? Who would casually gossip about Liu Qingxi? There must be someone behind them inciting the rumors.
Yet, it was these four or five seemingly ordinary people who committed such a heinous act.
If they were not severely punished, the resentment in his heart would remain unresolved.
"Why did you do this?"
In the message sent by his subordinate, Yang Yichen learned that these individuals were originally subordinates of Liu Qingxi and members of the Construction Team. During the time Liu Qingxi went missing, they were forcefully dismissed by Zhang Wuliang for spreading rumors.
This was enough to intimidate the hundreds of people in the Construction Team, but who would have thought that a flaw would appear here?
The individuals stubbornly refused to admit anything, saying, "We didn't do anything. What right do you have to arrest us?"
Ha! Yang Yichen sneered coldly; they were still so defiant at this point.
"Don't worry, you'll confess," he said just as Anan swung a whip soaked in chili water and struck the leader among them.
Immediately, a tear appeared in the tattered clothing, accompanied by blood seeping out. At the same time, the fiery chili water penetrated the ragged skin, and the burning pain made him howl in agony.
The sound of his suffering startled the other four nearby.
One of them rolled his eyes; given the situation, since they had been found, it was clear they had already been investigated. Why endure such physical torment?
"I... I!" He raised his hands and pleaded with Yang Yichen, "Young Master, can you let me go?" His eyes darted around like a frightened mouse, clearly not trustworthy.
Yang Yichen neither agreed nor denied it, maintaining an expression that suggested it was up to him. This made Gulldong swallow nervously and timidly say, "It's because we were dismissed."
It turned out that the five of them had been dismissed by Zhang Wuliang. The reason was well known within the Construction Team. Even if it wasn't widely publicized, they would casually mention it at home.
As a result, trouble arose; their gossiping and fabricating stories tarnished their master's reputation, and the news spread rapidly to the capital.
Their ringtones, accompanied by the spread of rumors, had completely ruined their reputations.
Moreover, they had become people whom everyone despised. After all, no master would want to employ someone who casually slanders them, even in unknown corners.
This was a major taboo for businessmen.
As a result, they could not find any legitimate work; people would rather spend a little more money than hire them.
For nearly two months, they had not received a single job.
Compared to working comfortably at Liu Qingxi's place, they were now living a life worse than that of pigs or dogs.
Their savings at home were gradually depleting, and with no work in sight, the whole family was waiting to starve.
Meanwhile, looking at their neighbors next door, who returned home joyfully every month to collect their wages, jealousy burned fiercely within them. The root cause of all this was Liu Qingxi.
If it weren't for her, they would be doing well right now; if it weren't for her, they would have a stable income every month.
If they were suffering, she shouldn't expect to have it easy either.
Thus, after some discussion, they devised a plan that required no bloodshed.
In fact, it was quite simple to implement: gather a few people and casually chat in the bustling market. Soon enough, those who loved gossip would approach to inquire. Consequently, the rumors spread from one person to ten and from ten to a hundred, leading to the current situation.
Upon understanding the sequence of events and the mindset of these individuals, Yang Yichen truly didn't know what to think.
In this world, there are always those who believe that everyone should revolve around them and fulfill all their demands.
Don't they ever think about why they were dismissed? Taking the master's money while plotting against them, it's no wonder they get fired.
"Ha ha! Well done, very good!" Yang Yichen laughed in anger. "Take these people to the Yamen."
Handling a few people was beneath him; he didn't want to get his hands dirty.
Anan was preparing to leave with the others when Yang Yichen suddenly said, "Wait!"
"We can't let them off so easily. They need to learn a lesson—twenty lashes each. Be careful not to leave too many external injuries!"
Yang Yichen's meaning was clear; twenty lashes without leaving marks could be more painful than leaving scars.
Without leaving wounds, the lashes had to be applied skillfully, creating a sensation akin to flesh tearing apart while the surface remained intact.
If not handled properly, it could lead to internal inflammation and festering, which would be even more agonizing than external injuries.
When these individuals were thrown into the Yamen and accused of contemptible crimes, they were already on the brink of death.
In this era, such accusations were not fatal; they would only be imprisoned for a month before being released.
However, what they didn't anticipate was that even greater suffering awaited them.
Their families had already been shattered because of their actions.
They paid a painful price for their mistakes.
If time could be rewound, they would never have acted this way. They would have behaved honestly and stayed on the right path, avoiding these crooked ways.
However, life is like this; everyone must pay for their own mistakes, and not all wrongs can be forgiven.
As for Yang Yichen, he has never been ambiguous about Liu Qingxi's matters. He harbors more hatred for those who harm Liu Qingxi than for those who harm himself, and his methods are more ruthless.
To torment someone means to make them live in regret without any way to find relief.
Yang Yichen does not sympathize with their fate, nor does he feel he has done anything wrong.
Because if he had not uncovered the truth and allowed rumors to spread unchecked, Liu Qingxi's outcome would have been even worse than theirs.
Thus, mercy towards enemies is cruelty towards oneself.
It wasn't until many days later that Liu Qingxi learned of this matter by chance and realized that Yang Yichen had dealt with it decisively and handled the instigator properly.
She felt a warmth in her heart; the feeling of having someone help resolve difficulties without her knowledge was so wonderful that once she experienced it, she never wanted to move on her own again.
"What should I do about becoming increasingly lazy?" Well, after getting pregnant, besides loving to eat, she also loved to sleep, and she was completely unwilling to work.
She wondered if continuing down this path would lead to being looked down upon.
"No matter how you change, you will always be the one I love." No matter what you become, you will forever be my beloved, cherished for a lifetime, hand in hand, sharing the long years together.
Liu Qingxi couldn't help but feel warmth spread through her, a sensation that tingled her scalp as if an electric current coursed through her body.
In the blink of an eye, another month had passed, and it was already deep autumn. The construction outside the Suburbs had reached a milestone. Liu Qingxi, with her belly showing, was accompanied by Yang Yichen as they appeared in the countryside.
Before them stood the companions who had followed her for a year. The busy year showed no signs of fatigue; instead, they were full of energy and vitality.
"Thank you all for your teamwork over the past year. Because of you, we were able to exceed our goals. Because of you, we have achieved what we have today. Because of you, we have formed a big family and worked hard together."
Yang Yichen stood beside Liu Qingxi, watching her spirited speech, observing how her words motivated everyone, seeing her being cherished and supported by all, and noticing the radiance she exuded.
"Without further ado, we have those who live nearby and those who have traveled from Ten Li Pu. The weather is still mild; I will distribute the wages shortly, along with bonuses for the New Year. Those who wish to stay in the capital can do so, and those who want to go home can return. Next year, we will continue our efforts!"
"Great!"
After a chorus of cheers, servants brought forward heavy boxes of Copper Coins, lined up in three rows like a winding dragon.
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